KUALA LUMPUR: Lumping those under the top 15% income group (T15) as “ultra rich” would cause injustice to some hardworking families, says Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.
This is because they will lose out on petrol, health and education subsidies just because they have a household income of RM13,000 a month, said the Ayer Hitam MP.
“To say that some under T15 are ultra rich is not fair. I am not defending the rich.
“Corporate figures or millionaires come under this group.
“So too will a husband and wife who are teachers under Grade DG48 for the last 12 years, because they will surely earn an income falling under this group. Is this fair?” the Ayer Hitam MP said when debating Budget 2025 in Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
In 2022, the T15 group was defined by the Statistics Department as those with a household income of at least RM13,295.
Under Budget 2025, those under T15 would no longer be eligible for health, education and fuel subsidies.
Dr Wee also questioned the inconsistency in the household income definition, which Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli had previously assured would be based on net disposable income and locality.
Dr Wee also said introducing a two-tier system for RON95 petrol subsidies would result in confusion among the public while increasing the operating cost of petrol stations.
He suggested that there should only be one price for RON95 petrol at the pumps.
“Instead, impose a petrol levy on the road tax for cars worth RM300,000 and above.
“If the car uses an average of 2,600 litres of petrol annually, RM1 could be imposed as a petrol levy for every litre.
“If they can afford to purchase a RM300,000 car, they will be able to afford the RM2,600 petrol levy,” he said.
Separately, Dr Wee, who is also MCA president, called for the Sales and Service Tax (SST) to be replaced with the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Dr Wee added that the expansion of items covered by the SST will not make it much different from the GST by next year.
“We can always change the name, be it the Madani Tax or whatnot, as long as it is based on the GST concept,” he said.
Dr Wee also said the e-invoicing system, set to be fully implemented next year, has characteristics of the GST system.
“If we proceed with the GST, e-invoicing will not be needed.
“At the same time, e-invoicing implementation will incur additional costs for the government through purchasing ICT equipment and necessary software.
“How much will be spent for this?” Dr Wee asked.
He also asked about the status of the High-Value Goods Tax (HVGT), questioning why the threshold value of high-value goods has yet to be defined.
“It’s been almost a year but there is still no news about the HVGT,” he said.
The HVGT was initially set to be implemented on May 1 this year.
Separately, Dr Wee said imposing raised excise duties on sugar-sweetened beverages while subsidising sugar manufacturers is akin to “giving vitamins and poisons at the same time”.
“We must choose one,” he said, referring to the announcement that excise duties on sugar-sweetened beverages will be raised by 40 sen per litre starting Jan 1, 2025.
